* Hims plans by year-end to sell legally manufacturable

peptides

* Grey-market peptide sales make NAD+ demand hard to

quantify, analyst says

* CEO of compounder says enforcement discretion could permit

earlier interim launches

By Amina Niasse

NEW YORK, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Hims & Hers Health ( HIMS ) plans to

offer some legally available peptides in 2026, but investors and

analysts who spoke to Reuters after the telehealth company's

quarterly results this week said sales for that offering are

unlikely to drive revenue growth this year.

Peptide treatments, built from short chains of amino acids,

have become a healthcare rage, despite lacking FDA approval.

Some of the treatments, used for everything from anti-aging to

muscle recovery, are available and some are not.

While Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has criticized

Biden-era restrictions on some peptides, FDA staff have argued

there is not sufficient evidence to support loosening the rules

on compounding the treatments.

Analysts have said peptides represent a $2.2 billion to

$3.3 billion market and companies marketing the treatments have

said demand has increased following the April beginning of an

FDA review.

CEO Andrew Dudum told investors on Monday that Hims by the end

of the year will sell peptides already legal for manufacturing,

including those known as NAD+, sermorelin and glutathione, used

to support metabolic function, weight loss, and immune function,

respectively.

Wall Street analysts and investors say that since NAD+ is

already available, the offering will not have as much impact on

revenue as peptides that could win FDA approval over the next

year.

"There's no 'release the floodgates' demand like there is

for other peptides that are in process of being rescheduled,"

said Paul Cerro, chief investment officer at Cedar Grove Capital

Management.

Morningstar analyst Keonhee Kim said because so many peptides

are purchased through a grey or unauthorized market, it is

difficult to assess how much Hims' plans to sell NAD+ are

worth.

Hims owns one of the most popular U.S. compounding

pharmacies and the company has begun stability and validation

testing for BPC-157, a peptide used for tissue repair. BPC-157

is among the group of peptides undergoing FDA review for

potential manufacturing by U.S. compounders.

Hims jumped to prominence thanks in part to sales of GLP-1

weight-loss drugs, and Cerro said investors should not expect

peptides to grow as fast.

Kim and Raul Shah, chief investment officer at DocShah

Financial, said Hims does not need to hurry to launch the

peptides reviewed by the FDA before the regulator finalizes

guidance.

"They already have a large number of subscribers, customer

loyalty and the brand feels fairly strong," said Kim.

Dudum has said the company is awaiting "full and final

rulemaking" from the FDA before selling peptides under review by

the agency.

In July, an advisory panel backed allowing compounding of six

peptides despite FDA staff concerns about limited evidence of

safety and effectiveness. But the panel's recommendation is

nonbinding. Wider access hinges on the FDA, and final rulemaking

could take about a year, industry experts said.

Mark Mikhael, CEO of compounder Olympia Pharmaceuticals, said

regulators could allow compounders to make certain peptides in

the interim through enforcement discretion, potentially allowing

Hims to launch treatments earlier than expected.

Shah said Hims has an advantage over rivals because it

already owns a pharmacy capable of manufacturing peptides,

having acquired a facility in 2025.

"Scaling new specialties is one of our core levers. It's

something that we've done quite well over the course of the last

couple of years," said Chief Financial Officer Yemi Okupe, in an

interview with Reuters.

Shah expects Hims' peptide business to generate more than $1

billion in revenue over the next five to 10 years, but that

revenue growth will take a while. "You have to have a long-term

time horizon."